The Paths of the Shadow
by Black Adda
Summary: Following the path of one young teen. A look at her life, from a confused teenager, to unplugging and introduction to the real world.
1. Trouble

Disclaimer: I do not own the Matrix or anything related to it, much as I want to. Amie and any other characters, unless otherwise stated, are mine.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*  
  
"Do you understand why you are here, Amie?" The teacher leaned back in his chair, long fingers gently massaging his temples.   
  
"Sure I do." The girl in front of him shrugged, her arms folded defiantly. At his raised eyebrow, she sighed and rephrased her answer. "Yes I do, Mr Drake, sir." She glanced down to the pile of papers on his desk before taking a seat, staring at the ageing head teacher.  
  
"Then you will also understand that this cannot continue." He stirred the papers with one hand, picking up one handwritten note. To Amie's suspicious eyes it looked like trouble - a detention note, to be exact. She sighed again.  
  
"What can't?"  
  
Her teacher slammed his hand down on the desk, the force of his action taking her by surprise. "Nothing can continue! Your continued insolence, your disobedience, your fighting, it must stop. Do you hear me?" He glared at her, the small skinny eleven year old. Her spirits sinking, she glared back, green eyes narrowed ferociously. He motioned to the note again.   
  
"Look at this, it was sent to me after second period today. Do you realise that this is your eighth detention this week?" She nodded miserably, and he continued, starting to read aloud. " 'Pupil details: Amie Brook, 9G, Art. Reason for detention: Misbehaviour and unsocial behaviour. Details: Amie was found in a heated argument with a fellow student before the lesson. She refused to settle once inside the classroom, throwing paintbrushes and erasers around the room. Halfway through the lesson, having been seated away from her classmates, she became engaged in a violent fight. She was then removed from the class and sent to a senior member of staff. Signed: Mrs Morgan.' Do you have anything to say?"  
  
Amie shook her head despondently. He won't believe the truth... she thought, looking up to meet his eyes. "I was provoked," she crossed her fingers under the desk, hoping that he would believe her excuse. He didn't, frowning at her.  
  
"You were the one fighting. Why did you let yourself be provoked?"  
  
"Because... I just did. It wasn't my fault, honestly." Nervously, she pulled down the sleeves of her scruffy school jumper, her eyes widening innocently. "Mrs Morgan doesn't like me - she's the one that's given three of the eight detentions this week."  
  
Mr Drake groaned, grey eyes flickering in defeat. "Of course she likes you. Mrs Morgan is a competent, fair woman - she doesn't judge students. But if you continue to cause trouble in her classes-" He was cut off.  
  
"I won't! I'll stop! Well, I'll try. Honestly." She looked suddenly anxious, fidgeting in the hard plastic chair. He nodded.  
  
"Very well. Go back to your class for the last few minutes - Music, wasn't it?"  
  
Without waiting to answer, her indifferent demeanour returned, Amie fled. Her teacher sighed and settled in his chair, watching the redhead leave his study. The meeting had been a complete waste of both of their time that was clear - he had achieved nothing. What is wrong with her?   
  
~*~*~*~*  
  
"What is wrong with you?" The angry shriek pained Amie, causing her to press closer against the kitchen wall. The wrath of her furious mother bore down on her. "Day after day, detention after detention! Why do you keep getting them? What do you do for six hours a day, when I pay for you to be learning?"  
  
Her hair tumbling loose around her shoulders, Amie closed her eyes, feeling the fresh bruise rising under her top. It always happened like this, every day. However much she reasoned with her mother, the hot-tempered Irishwoman always exploded upon finding the detentions. A row always ensued, cultivating in smashed glass and fresh purple bruises on Amie's pale skin.   
  
"Mum-"  
  
"Don't you 'mum' me, girl! You have too much detention! Why are you not learning at that school! I pay for you to learn, not to get detention!"   
  
The glass smashed against the wall above Amie's head, tiny pieces of glass and plaster trickling down over her shoulders.   
  
"Mum, don't. Please." She closed her eyes, silent tears beginning to run down her pale cheeks. Her mother glared.   
  
"You get no sympathy from me, Maeve!"   
  
"Don't call me that," Amie hissed, pushing past her mother forcefully. "My name is Amie! It's bad enough that... that is my name at all, without you using it. Just... leave me alone!" Running up the stairs, she slammed her bedroom door and settled down at the computer, logging onto the Internet.   
  
Her practised fingers clicked the way onto her usual chat board, signing in as Shadow. Scanning the long list of messages available, she sighed and reached for her stereo controls, starting to type as the music began.  
  
'I'm looking for Talon...'  
  
~*~*~*  
  
A/N: My first fanfic. Please R&R, especially as I'm not too sure what I'm doing! Hope you like ^.~ 


	2. Gullibility

Disclaimer: See first chapter for all disclaimers.  
  
~*~*~*~*~  
  
Amie sat at her computer, dozing slightly. Fresh bruises stood out on her bare arms, mingled with old scars. The computer screen scrolled slowly, a search engine running on the single word that Amie had input into the search bar... 'Talon.' The screen clicked suddenly, waking her up. She opened her eyes, groaning as the familiar shout came from below.  
  
"Maeve!"  
  
She stood up in a sudden temper, shouting down the stairs, "I'm coming, alright? And don't call me that!" Rubbing her eyes, she ran down the stairs, closely avoiding her vindictive mother. The two had tried to avoid each other for last year, Amie withdrawing into herself more and more. Most of their communication had been conducted through Amie's brother, Richard, on the rare occasions when he was home from university. Though they had never been close, Amie had come to rely on Richard to get her through the year. Now, he had moved out of the country, living as a banker in South America.   
  
Going to the cabinet for a drink, Amie stonily ignored her mother. She leaned against the table, flinching as her mother spoke.  
  
"Maeve."  
  
"My name is Amie." She muttered, through gritted teeth. "Don't call me Maeve."  
  
"Fine!" her mother snapped, exasperated. "You have to go to Sylvie's today. I go to work."  
  
Amie shook her head, glaring at the wall opposite. "I'm not going there. I can stay here."  
  
"You will go to Sylvie's. She like having you."  
  
"Yeah, but her brats don't." Amie stood up, dropping her cup into the sink. "I'm going out." Sighing, she reached for her keys. Sylvie was an old friend of her mother's, a placid Irishwoman who insisted on calling Amie by her middle name, Maeve. Amie hated Sylvie almost as much as she hated the name Maeve. The quiet woman tended to withdraw into her bedroom, leaving Amie with her three children. These taunted her already damaged spirit, occasionally adding to the cuts and bruises that lined Amie's limbs from arguments at home.  
  
"No, you not. You going to Sylvie's, or you going nowhere."  
  
Amie stiffened, her mind working quickly. Suddenly, her pent-up tension snapped, and she turned away, hurrying to the front door. "Fine!" she retorted, opening the door. "I'll take 'nowhere' to mean home, as well!" She left the house, tears brimming in her eyes. ~Why can't we get on? ~ she wondered, slamming the door behind her. ~Perhaps it would be easier if... ~   
  
~*~*~*~*~*  
  
A couple of hours later, Amie stood in an estate agents office, a small bag by her feet. As soon as her mother had left to go to work, she had sneaked back into the house, packing one or two essential belongings, before leaving it for what would, hopefully, be the last time. She brushed her hair behind her ear, trying to look older than she actually was. Being short and thin didn't help, but the make-up she had applied to hide her tear-stained cheeks did.  
  
"How old did you say you were?" The estate agent swung his feet up on the desk, chewing his pen. The business was going badly and running out of money, but this girl was surely too young for her own home. ~ She says she's over sixteen. And this transaction doesn't have to go on the records ~ he assured himself.  
  
"I'm seventeen." Amie did her best to convince him, and then gave up. "Look, I just want a small apartment. I don't care where, so long as it's around here, and I don't care about size. Just get me an apartment, damn it."   
  
"Fair enough," the estate agent shrugged, pulling a few files from a drawer in his deck. "How does this sound? Cash only." He showed her a photo. It was a small apartment, with only one room and a tiny bathroom, but it was very cheap and on the other side of town from where she had lived previously.   
  
"It's perfect." Amie dug some notes out of her pocket. She had stolen one of her mother's credit cards to withdraw money, sensing that any deal she made would be off the record. She had deliberately chosen the seediest estate agent in her city of Birmingham, knowing that any request for a home was likely to be accepted by them. Handing him a few hundred pound notes, she waited while he counted the money. He frowned, looking up.  
  
"Not enough."  
  
"It's all I've got." Faking nonchalance, she turned away, reaching one hand behind her for the money back. "Fair enough. I'll go somewhere else."  
  
"Oh - alright!" Glowering at her, the estate agent threw the keys across the room. "You know where it is?"  
  
Amie went to retrieve the keys, giving the estate agents a rewarding smile. "Sure I do. And thanks!"  
  
~*~*~*~*~*  
  
"I'm seventeen." Amie repeated her statement, looking up at the pub owner. After dropping off her belongings in her new home, she had searched out a small pub down the road. Nodding in satisfaction as she saw the 'Help Wanted' sign, she had entered, requesting to see the owner. "And I need a job. I'm willing to work hard."  
  
"Yeah, you will work hard if you work for me," the pub owner nodded, wiping a glass clean. "You look way too small to be working. Can you do nights?"  
  
"Yeah, that's great." Amie waited as the man inspected her, eyeing her slim limbs suspiciously. Finally, he nodded.  
  
"Alright then. I guess you can work here. Eight pm to two am, every single night. You miss a night, you lose the job. Understand?"  
  
"Of course I understand. I won't miss a single night; you just wait and see. Thank you!" Giving him a winning smile, Amie left the pub, grinning to herself. ~All this smiling might be painful, but it pays off. People are so trusting. ~ she thought, shaking her head bemusedly. ~Oh, well. ~   
  
~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Cautiously, Amie hit the 'on' button on her computer. It had been her main priority when moving in, and was, so far, the only thing that she had unpacked. ~Not that there's much to unpack...~ she had only brought a few essential items, recognising that the main factor in her new home was space. As the Internet loaded, she sat back and sighed, watching it dial. She watched her homepage load, the chat board flashing up on the screen. Logging in quickly, she typed, as always, the unanswered statement.  
  
'I'm looking for Talon...'  
  
~*~*~*~*~*  
  
A/N: Ooh, repetition! Hope you like this chapter, please R&R. If you're reading this, please understand that this is my first fanfic, and is basically an experiment. No doubt in the future a revised, much better version of this story will come out. Also, I apologise if it seems like I am rushing the story a bit. It's a bad habit of mine, but it'll probably stop when she gets unplugged. These few chapters are just back story, really. Will update again when I get more reviews!   
  
A note to all reviewers: Thanks for all the reviews - I love y'all! Well, not technically, but you get my drift. The comments are really encouraging me to continue, so look out for more chapters soon! Again, thanks for the reviews; you're all great people (apart from Silver Lightening, who is an idiot.) Bye! 


	3. Love and Depression

Disclaimer: This is getting boring x_x. Please refer back to chapter 1! Except for this: The characters Nemisis and Nitro both belong to Issie. Do not steal them. Nor mine for that matter, but especially not hers. :[  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
In one of the many Zion control centres an auburn haired woman sat at a computer, a younger man watching over her shoulder. As she reached to touch a point on the screen, calling up more information on their subject, the man spoke quietly.  
  
"So what do you think then, Sequana?" he asked, his voice slightly hoarse. Sequana glanced up, shrugging.  
  
"She seems to be doing fine, no sign of any agent activity around her. Not yet, anyway."  
  
"I don't know whether that's reassuring or not," he sounded amused. "Do you think she's ready for unplugging yet?" Pulling up a chair, he sat beside Sequana, looking at the screen. "How long have you been watching her for? And how old is she?"  
  
"She's fourteen. We've been watching her for around six months, but she's been suspicious of reality for a lot longer than that. She's coming on well, definitely becoming aware of the matrix, but it's hard to say." Sequana stopped talking for a minute, and then frowned at her companion. "Hey, Magni, why don't you stop asking me questions and take a look at her information? What do you think?"  
  
She watched as Magni read over the coppertop's stats, gently pressing the touch-sensitive screen to call up more information. He sat back after a minute, glancing at Sequana. "Hmm, perhaps you're right to wait. I'd give her a couple more years before we bring her out - we might be wrong about how ready she is. What does she call herself?"  
  
"Shadow. She hasn't been hacking very long, that's probably why the agents haven't picked up on her." She stood up, closing down Shadow's information as a younger woman came to take her place. "Hi, Whisper. I managed to actually close down my work this time." She smiled cheerfully.  
  
Whisper laughed and sat down, her silvery blonde hair falling over her shoulder. "Thanks 'Ana. Hey Magni. How's it going with you two?"   
  
"I'm just fine." Sequana picked up her bag, winking at the two. "I'll leave you two, shall I?"  
  
Magni watched her leave, pulling himself up to sit on the desk beside Whisper. Tapping at her keyboard, she logged in to information on the coppertop that she had been watching. After a few minutes of sitting watching her, Magni spoke again, bored. "How's your pre-freed brat doing?" He didn't speak unkindly, leaning over Whisper's shoulder to look at the screen.   
  
"He's doing great!" Whisper jumped up, hitting the 'print' command on her computer. "I think he's ready to come out!" As the thin sheet of paper, scarcely seen in the computerised city of Zion, was fed out from Whisper's printer, she picked up a pen and leaned over the sheet. In an untidy scrawl, she scribbled on the top of the sheet:  
  
'COPPERTOP NAME - Tsunami   
  
AGE - 18  
  
LOCATION - Dublin, Ireland  
  
DISK FILE - DI758'  
  
She folded the page up, slipping a computer disk into the centre and went to the door. "Hey, you!" Collaring a young, newly freed girl she gave her the small package, along with specific instructions, "Take this to Commander Lock. Now. And make sure you don't lose the disk inside it, alright?"  
  
The girl nodded quickly, looking terrified, and ran off clutching her package. Magni, watching, chuckled slightly at the girl's expression as Whisper gave her orders. Whisper was a formidable woman if you didn't know her, but when you did... well, she was all sweetness and light. "Hey, Whis'," he called softly, sliding off the desk as she came over.  
  
"You going to the party tonight?"  
  
Whisper giggled. "Of course I am! You mean, am I going with -you-?"  
  
"Well, maybe." Magni gave a lopsided grin, waiting hopefully. Whisper giggled again, reaching for his hand. "Said I would, didn't I? I'll see you at the Temple later."  
  
"I'll walk you to your room - I've got nothing better to do."  
  
As the couple walked towards Whisper's apartment, Magni frowned, thinking. He was a rookie at the Zion Coppertop Control, as it was affectionately known throughout Zion. He had originally worked as a medic on The Isis along with Sequana, but after a sentinel attack the ship had been too badly damaged and had been destroyed. While Sequana went on to work in Zion, Magni had transferred to The Anubis as a temporary medic whilst the official one, Marie, was in the Zion med bay. ~Ironic, ~ he thought idly, smiling wryly. He had been kicked off the ship when she returned, to put it bluntly, and had sought out Sequana, finding her happily living in Zion. That had only been a few months ago, and he was now working at mastering 'Coppertop Control'.   
  
"So, Whis, what was that disk for?" He asked curiously.  
  
"It had Tsunami's details on. Everything that Zion had on him, I saved to that disk. Now Lock can input that to his own computer to decide what he thinks about getting him out. It's an old-fashioned way of doing it, but it works," Whisper explained patiently, lacing her fingers with Magni's. "I hope Lock decides to get him out."  
  
"I don't," Magni smiled, not speaking seriously. "What if you like him more than me?"  
  
"Of course I won't!" Whisper laughed. "I'll probably never meet him - he'll be freed onto a ship, and you know how hard it is to distinguish one coppertop from another."  
  
"True." Magni nodded and continued walking, coming to a halt as they reached Whisper's apartment. "See you tonight, then?"  
  
"You know it." Whisper smiled at her long-term boyfriend, her slim body resting against his as she hugged him. "Bye." She hurried into her apartment, her loose hair swinging behind her.   
  
Sequana sighed as she wandered around Zion, thinking over her days work. The coppertop that she was currently monitoring, Shadow, had won her curiosity. ~Not many fourteen year olds live alone, ~ she thought, taking a bite of her wafer. ~I'll have to see her once she's out, I'd like to meet her. ~ She closed her eyes momentarily, remembering her own life in the matrix. It had been all right - until about a year before she was unplugged. That was when the hell started. She winced, lost in memories.  
  
"Ana? Are you alright?" Sequana opened her eyes, seeing a concerned face before her. She frowned slightly, recognising the woman as her friend Nemisis, Captain of The Millennium.   
  
"Yeah, I'm fine Nem," she muttered, sighing again. "What about you? Why are you in Zion? None of the other ships are."  
  
Nemisis hugged her friend gently, watching her in concern for a minute. "The Millennium needs re-fuelling. And we hit a squiddie attack a few days ago where she took a bit of damage. Thought I'd kill two birds with one stone, so to speak. Are you sure you're alright?"  
  
"Yeah, positive," she insisted. "I was just a bit down, but I'll be alright. I'll have to be, for the party tonight."  
  
"Ooh, yes, the party." Nemisis' eyes lit up. "Nitro and I are going together. What about you?"  
  
"Don't remind me about couples." Sequana made a face. "I've had to deal with Whisper - I work with her - and Magni, who you know, for weeks. Since Magni left the Anubis, in fact." She leaned against the railing, staring at the milling crowds around them. Nemisis took her arm, starting to lead her through the crowd. "Why don't we go to the mess hall? I'll give you an hour to get drunk and pour out your woes. It always used to help with you."  
  
Sequana grinned and allowed herself to be led. "Am I really that predictable? Honestly Nem, you should have let me know before. I might have changed my habits."  
  
Nemisis looked over her shoulder sceptically, smiling. "Knowing you, I doubt it." 


	4. An Unexpected Meeting

Disclaimer: You should know by now. Don't own anything except the characters, and not even all those are mine. Again, Nemisis and Nitro belong to Issie.   
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
That night, the walls of the Temple rocked with the music and dancing. Her temporary depression banished by an hour of alcohol and chat (and a good deal of crying), Sequana sat at the bar, her hands cupped round a glass. What exactly the glass contained, she wasn't sure, but it was strong enough to satisfy her tastes. The crowd around her, all of Zion by the looks of it, pulsated to the rhythm of the music. It was chiefly couples dancing together, their bodies pressed together, but here and there small groups of friends stood laughing and dancing together. Sequana's eyes searched the throng, looking for Magni and Whisper. There they were - dancing together.   
  
Sequana's eyes widened. She hadn't known that they could dance - not like that. Whisper's back was pressed against Magni's stomach, her hands raised above her head to meet his. Their legs interlocked, Whisper stretched up, the silky material of her dress rubbing against Magni's bare chest. She turned round, continuing to rise and fall with the music, until their positions had changed over, and she stood behind Magni, her arms around his waist.   
  
Seeing their elated expression, Sequana felt a tinge of jealousy - which heightened when she turned to see Nemisis and Nitro in much the same condition. Sighing, she raised the glass to her mouth, then dropped it, nearly choking on her drink, at the sight before her eyes. Bouncing into view, apparently filled with barely suppressed energy, was a familiar face.  
  
"Kis!" She gasped and stood up, forgetting about the spilt drink on the bar. The bartender, a Zion-born man, glared at her as he began to wipe the alcohol with a sodden rag, muttering to himself. Oblivious, Sequana hurried towards her sister, enveloping her in a tight hug. "What are you doing here?"  
  
Captain Kismet of The Anubis, virtual sister to Sequana, laughed happily, pushing Sequana away gently. "Well, that's a nice welcome! It's not 'Hi Kis! How are you?' then, I see?"   
  
"I'm sorry," Sequana laughed and led Kismet to the bar, signalling to the bartender to get them a drink. "It's just... There's been no word from the Anubis for months and months. Everyone's been so worried. You do realise that the whole crew - and the ship - is 'missing believed dead' don't you?"  
  
Kismet nodded, staring into her drink. "I do... But I can tell you; we were probably a lot more worried than you were. We were the ones on that screwed up lump of metal." Sequana frowned.   
  
"What are you talking about - 'screwed up'? What happened?"  
  
"What do you think happened?" Kismet frowned at her drink. "Squiddie attack. About twenty of the little buggers, all at once. Our best gunner was in the med bay, and the others are all either whimpering coppertops or middling-to-good. You wouldn't believe the state the Anubis was in, it was more like a flattened, holey sheet of metal than a hovercraft. Our mechanic was working around the clock to fix it, with the rest of us trying to help - and getting in his way." Kismet smiled slightly, taking a swig of the drink. She choked suddenly, spitting her mouthful back into the cup and glaring at Sequana. "God, Ana! I know you like it strong but... yeuk. This is vile."  
  
Sequana shrugged, signalling for another drink. "I like it. It's good for drowning woes in. But carry on."  
  
"There's not really anything more. Apocalypse finally managed to fix the ship up enough to return here, but it was a close thing. I swear he deserves a medal for getting it up and running again. And here we are." She frowned suddenly. "But what woes have you got to drown?"  
  
"Nothing really, not any more. Nemisis gave me an hour of her time to get drunk and forget about Magni and Whis." Sequana aimed an accusatory glance in the couple's direction. "I'm fine now though. I'm glad to have you back. If I'm lucky I might have a coppertop mission for you."  
  
Briefly, Sequana outlined Tsunami's details and story, explaining that she had been watching him for some time before finally deciding to send his details to Commander Lock. "If Councillor Hamann has his way, I think he'll ask my advice about what ship he should be freed onto. Lock won't like that, but the Councillor always asks. He thinks that we should know best, seeing as we've been watching the poor things for so long. And..." she leaned closer to Kismet. "If I get a say in the matter, I'm definitely going to be giving him your name. Captain Kis, of the screwed up lump of metal."   
  
Kismet smiled faintly. "I don't think you'll get anywhere if you say that. I wasn't planning on letting Lock know about the Anubis - you know what he's like. I'd probably be demoted or something. I was hoping that I could just fob him off with some story about needing fuel, while Apocalypse and a few of the Zion mechanics work on the ship."  
  
"You'd better tell him to hurry up, then," Sequana said darkly. "I have a feeling he's on the warpath about something. That kid I sent with Tsunami's stuff earlier looked petrified when I said who it was for. I don't fancy your chances if he finds out you're lying to him."   
  
"I'm not lying!" Kismet protested. "I'm just... being economical with the truth." She nodded, grinning. "So, where's the famous couple?"  
  
"They're over there," Sequana tilted her head in the direction of Whisper and Magni and then looked up. "Oh, no... they're not. I'm sure we can guess where they've gone - if we really want to."  
  
Whisper rested her head against Magni's shoulder. "I'm tired," she murmured, her eyes closed. Magni nodded and ran a finger down her back gently. "I can imagine," he said softly, kissing the end of her nose. "You're a pretty wild dancer. Pretty good too." He smiled and pulled away from her slightly, sitting on the edge of her bed. "You want me to leave so you can have a decent couple of hour's sleep? The party will be long finished by now."  
  
"Wait." She reached out to catch his hand, her eyes wide. "What if I get nightmares?" she asked mischievously, sliding closer to him. "You wouldn't want to leave me all alone, scared... would you?"   
  
As he sighed, giving in, she moved to sit on his lap. Cuddling against his body, she closed her eyes happily. As a sudden thought struck her, a minute or two later, she looked up, pouting. "You never answered me."  
  
Magni smiled, squeezing her hand gently. "Of course I don't want you to have nightmares." He kissed her nose again. "You have a cute nose, you know that?"  
  
"You've told me." She closed her eyes again, her arms encircling him. As she lapsed into sleep, falling back on the bed, she was dimly away of two strong arms holding her close, keeping her safe.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
A/N (Which I forgot on the last chapter, my apologies!): I liked doing this chapter and the last one - it makes a nice change to air some of my other, new characters. Look out for Sequana and Kismet fics after this one! So, what do you think - reviews? Big thanks and hugs go out to all my reviewers so far, apart from the obvious one ^_~! 


	5. The Matrix Has You

"A freeing mission." Councillor Hamann surveyed the man before him. The young captain sat motionless in his seat, watching the councillors and commander silently. He nodded, signifying that he had heard and understood the statement. "I have a folder of information on the target, but am I correct in thinking that you have been following her for some time already?"  
  
"I have, councillor." Talon nodded, standing as the older man passed him the folder. "Thank you."  
  
"Good. The Horus can leave as soon as possible. Do not take too long over it." Commander Lock delivered his instructions briefly, nodding to the captain. "You may leave."  
  
"Yes... sir." Talon stood, holding the folder. He nodded to the council and left the room, heading for where he knew that his crew would be waiting.  
  
Hours later, the Zion gates opened to let out the hovercraft. Rising from the docks slowly, the Horus left the city for the pipelines that would take it to the surface.

* * *

"That's grand love, cheers."   
  
Amie sighed as she set the glasses down, one hand pressing the fabric of her shirt to her skin. The clinking of glass and ashtrays set hr nerves on edge, the smoke seeming to dance around the room in patterns. She detested the smoking rooms of the pub, hated them almost as much as she hated the men who sat smoking, making coarse remarks and peering down her top whenever they got the chance. She collected the empty glasses, setting them on the tray that she held, before straightening up. There were only a few more hours of her shift, until she could go home and sleep through the day, regaining her energy.   
  
As she turned towards the kitchen door, a haze of smoke passed in front of her eyes, smelling of nicotine and beer. She swayed slightly, only dimly hearing the crash of glass as the tray tipped its contents onto the ground. Reaching out blindly, she fumbled along the wall for a brush, a mop, anything. Finding nothing, she crouched, seeing the splintered glass and cigarette butts spread over the polished wood. She stretched out a hand towards a cigarette, withdrawing it sharply as a splinter of glass caught her finger.  
  
A bauble of blood blossomed on her pale skin. Not even a scratch, really, but it got to her. She stared, transfixed, at the blood, a thousand images flashing through her mind. The crash of glass, catching the light as it fell, a scream, echoing through the kitchen, blood. The room swam in front of her eyes, blurring. Darkness.  
  
She woke up to muttering voices all around her. Her head pounded, but she opened her eyes, struggling to sit up. A hand pushed her back down gently, putting only a little pressure on her exposed arms. Exposed. The word shot through her clouded thoughts like gunfire. "Holy...!" She scrambled to her feet, pushing the opened shirt cuffs back around her wrists. They had been rolled up, showing the long, pale scars that stood as a lasting testament to her childhood. Had anyone noticed them?  
  
They must have done - it was a popular topic of conversation, that, the fact that Amie never let anyone see her arms or legs. Her colleagues were caring, but she had heard many rumours and jests flying around the kitchen during dull hours. Wiping a hand across her forehead, she reached for her bag, ready to leave.  
  
"I'm fine, honestly. I'm just ill, I just fainted. I only live five minutes away." She argued down their protests wearily - all she wanted right now was her apartment and a good night's sleep. Or, at least, a couple of hours sleep before the nightmares came back, just like they always did.  
  
The night seemed alive with energy, an energy that normally filled her with elation. Tonight, however, it was different. The energy had a dangerous undercurrent... something wasn't quite right in the air. She hurried through the darkness, skirting the bright circles of light. Her arms were stretched out in front of her, the sleeves down, but the scars were imprinted on her mind. They always would be - would always come back to haunt her, would always shine bright when she closed her eyes. A shout alerted her to her senses, bringing her snapping out of her reverie. She had let her guard down, a thing that never happened.  
  
A small gang of teenagers was in front of her, mainly boys, but some girls too. She turned, caught like a deer in the headlights of an approaching car. Catching her breath, holding back sobs, she ran, stones skittering behind her. The door to her apartment block was ahead, easily reachable, but would she give up before she reached it? The gang was following, she knew, but she stayed straight on her course, the door banging shut behind her as she rushed into the building.   
  
Somehow finding her way up the dark stairs and into her apartment, she sunk down on the floor shivering and crying. It had been a long time since she had broken down like this, and there was only one known cure.   
  
She crawled towards the computer, still crying quietly, and curled up on the beanbag before it. Rubbing her eyes, she switched on the computer, pulling her walkman towards her.   
  
As the tape started playing, she gazed at the screen, trying to ignore the tears that now rolled silently down her cheeks. Suddenly, the screen flickered, and went from its default background to a pure, unbroken black.   
  
"Holy..." she breathed, using one of her favourite expressions. She hit 'escape' quickly, trying to close down the screen. _Just wonderful. Now the computer breaks down_ She curled into a ball, giving up on trying. _Well, sod it. See if I care_ She started to close her eyes, only to snap them open again as words appeared on the screen, letter by letter. It was in a bright green, plain font, and it was just... appearing. She hit 'escape' again, sighing and reading the text when the command didn't work.  
  
'Wake up, Shadow.'  
  
"I am awake," she muttered irritably, taking a moment to realise the word Shadow. "Hang on... how does it know that name. And what -is- it?"  
  
'You are a prisoner in your mind.'  
  
"Oh, sure I am," she murmured, keeping up her commentary on the message. "And I live in Santa's workshop."  
  
"The Eye of Horus is upon you.'  
  
Horus... that rang a bell. She frowned, trying to remember her school history lessons. Horus, the god of... something. She shrugged - it didn't matter, she couldn't remember. She stayed silent, waiting for the next line of text.  
  
'The Matrix has you.'   
  
With that last line, the screen flickered and reverted to its default. Amie sat, stunned. How had the hacker - that's what she presumed it was - known her own hacker alias? And what had they meant? "What is the matrix?" she whispered into the darkness, as the parting words flashed into her mind once again.  
  
'The Matrix has you.'

* * *

A/N: Sheesh, this one took forever! Sorry people hugs I liked this chapter, it was good to get in a bit more of Shadow, especially since this fic -is- about her, lol. However, the previous two chapters were relevant, as you should see in a few chapters. I really wanted a bit more of Talon in this one, but I just... couldn't ick Maybe in the next one, when Shaz gets unplugged.  
  
Again, Talon belongs completely to Issie, who has the right to poke me if she feels that I am manking up her characters Thanks for all the reviews people - they're what really give me the motivation to write more! I read and love every review, but I do have a couple of questions to respond to:  
  
Ditzy Beanbag: First, great name! Second, Amie/Shadow is sixteen when she is unplugged... or seventeen... or eighteen. I realised a few days ago that I've got all my timelines mixed up, sorry! But she is in her late teens. And thirdly, yes, she is indeed Irish. Or at least, half Irish. Her father was actually English, which is where the English half of her name came from. I have a lot of backstory for that, but you don't need it, lol! 


	6. A Trip Down the Rabbit Hole

Disclaimer: In this chapter, Shadow is the only character that belongs to me, and this will remain so for the rest of the fanfic, unless otherwise stated.

* * *

Bip-bip. Bip-bip. Bip-bip.  
  
Amie sat still, her fingers still hovering over the escape key, her eyes fixed on the phone. It lay innocently on the floor, vibrating slightly as it beeped for her attention.  
  
Bip-bip. Bip-bip.  
  
Her fingers trembled slightly as she reached to pick it up. Only her employer had the number: she had no friends or decent family to get in touch with. Her brain functioning on autopilot, she raised the small phone to her ear, pressing 'speak' warily.  
  
"Hello?"  
  
_"Shadow. We don't have much time." _The voice was low, slightly muffled by background noise. It sounded like they were outside... however 'they' was.  
  
"Who are you? How do you know that name?"  
  
_"I know a lot about you... more than you think. My name is Talon. That is all you need to know right now. That, and the eye of Horus is upon you. Be aware, take no risks, but meet me at the end of this road. You're about to take a trip down the rabbit hole."_  
  
With that, the line went dead, leaving Amie sitting in stunned silence. Who had just phones her? It sounded like someone mad - what was the 'rabbit hole' business about? But... how did they know the name Shadow? She frowned suddenly. That was twice in the last few minutes that someone had said 'the eye of Horus is upon you,' and she had been searching for Talon for years. Coincidence? She thought not.  
  
Throwing on a jacket, she hurried outside the apartment to run down the stairs, stopping suddenly as she reached the bottom. What if this was a trap - what if she was running into danger? Ridiculous as the idea sounded, it could happen. She had to wonder why this 'Talon' had her number - and if it was the same one. She stood for a moment, tormented with the choice. Well, I'm losing my mind anyway - better to lose my life than my sanity, she reasoned, finally stepping out into the cool night.  
  
To her relief, the gang of teenagers was no longer around, and the street was deserted and dark, except for the occasional bright orange pools of light from streetlamps. Pulling her jacket around her shoulders, she headed down the road, keeping a wary eye out for trouble.

* * *

At the end of the road, a small group stood concealed behind a building. They appeared to be young adults, all but one wearing dark trench coats - the other clad in bright pink. They were talking seriously, keeping an eye on the road.  
  
"Great work Tal - I bet that really got her curious," the woman in pink was talking, grinning as she looked down the road. "The Eye of Horus... it's great!" She shifted her weight from foot to foot, watching the street intently. "I'm bored... when's she coming?"  
  
Talon sighed, leaning past the woman to look. "Be patient Byte - she'll probably want to think about it. Would you come straight away?" He saw a dark figure hurrying through a patch of light further up, and stepped forwards for a better view. "That could be her. I wonder if -" He stopped talking suddenly, as the ringing of a phone interrupted him. He picked it up, frowning.  
  
_"Talon, I got some bad news."_ It was the voice of the Horus's operator, Blitz.  
  
"What is it?"  
  
_"You got agent activity headed your way. I don't know how many, or exactly where they are, but they're moving fast. You need to get out of there."_  
  
"I can't - Shadow isn't here yet."  
  
_"I don't care, you'll have to leave her. Go back another day - best to disappoint her than die. Damn it Tal - move!"  
_  
The line went dead, leaving Talon staring at the others. They are curious; anxious to know what had happened.  
  
"What is it?" Enigma stepped forwards, her face showing her concern.  
  
He looked at his crew, only answering the question after a moment. "Agents. Blitz said they're moving fast." He hurried forwards again to watch the road. "We need to pick up Shadow and get her to where we'll free her - as quickly as possible." He pointed to where they could see a figure, standing motionless near a pool of light. "I think that's her. I'll go over - Enigma, Byte, Scathach, you go get in the car ready. Glance, come with me."  
  
As their companions headed in the opposite direction, Talon and Glance hurried towards the figure. Glance looked around warily, his hand on his gun in case agents turned up. "Hey Tal - you go to her, I'll cover you," he said as they neared the waiting girl.  
  
Talon nodded and continued forwards, heading for the streetlamp. As he stepped forwards into its circle of light, the girl turned towards him, her long red hair catching the light as she did so. It was Shadow all right - Talon had been able to read her appearance by studying the matrix code whilst he was watching her. "Shadow," he said softly, standing in the orange light.   
  
Amie turned towards the footsteps as they approached, glancing away quickly. It was someone she didn't know - a young man in a suit, his dark skin gleaming below the light. Somehow he didn't fit her idea of Talon - although she could have one she didn't know. She had never seen him, never seen a picture of him. His voice and name were all that she had to go by - and the fact that he knew her nickname. She started as he spoke, turning back towards him.   
  
"Talon?" She swallowed the last of her nerves, stepping towards him warily. Talon nodded, looking at her for the first time. She was pretty, in a haunting, daunting way. She was pale skinned, her red hair and startling green eyes contrasting with the fairness of her skin, an appearance that was slightly unnerving in the harsh orange light. As Glance coughed, reminding him of the impending danger, he stopped his appraisal of the coppertop and spoke again.   
  
"Yes, I'm Talon. I'm here to tell you about the matrix and to give you an important choice. But first, you must understand that we are in great danger. All your questions will be answered, but we must get away from here. You have to come with us." He watched her, waiting for her response.  
  
Amie thought quickly. She had to exercise some caution, even if she didn't normally. What was this 'danger' that Talon was talking about? Who was the other man that was standing close by? Could she trust them? Probably not, she admitted to herself, but what does it matter? "Alright." She stepped forwards again, nodding.  
  
Talon smiled. "Good. Follow me." He turned and walked away, leading Amie and Glance down the road. As they turned a corner, he gestured to a black car that stood there, its engine humming softly. "Get in."

* * *

Amie stood nervously inside a small room, gazing around at the equipment that surrounded her. Talon and the other people with him - she had not yet been introduced - bustled around the room, seemingly ignorant of her presence. Uncomfortable in the busy silence, she cleared her throat, shifting her weight from one leg to the other.   
  
At the faint sound, Byte looked up. She was still wearing her bright pink trench coat, a fact that had disturbed Amie when she first saw her. Wandering over, the woman smiled at Amie reassuringly. "It'll be alright soon. Sit down." She indicated a large chair surrounded by wires and electrical devices. As Amie sat down, sitting tentatively on the leather edge of the chair, Talon walked over to her, concealing something in his hand.  
  
"Shadow, I need to ask you something."  
  
She sat silent, waiting. His remark didn't need or deserve an answer; she was the one that needed answers, not him.  
  
"Have you ever felt that things... weren't quite right? That reality wasn't reality?"  
  
She stayed watching him stonily. She had calmed down from her fright on the way home and waited, calm and composed, for the rest of his questions.  
  
"Have you ever wondered if what we know as real is actually a fake, an imitation world placed over our eyes to prevent us from seeing the truth?"  
  
Amie hesitated. She still wasn't sure about Talon, but, for the first time in her life, she trusted someone completely. It was just whether he was sane or not that was worrying her. "Yes..." she murmured after a moment.  
  
"Then I have something to tell you." Talon drew up a chair, leaning forwards to speak to her. "This world - the food you eat, the clothes you wear, the colours and scents you see and smell - these are fake. They are the programmed reality of a system we call the Matrix. My job is to free you from the Matrix - free you from your mind."  
  
She frowned. He was talking gibberish, it seemed - but the name 'the Matrix' rang a bell. Not only had he mentioned it before, but it also had often come up in her relentless search for Talon through the years. "Go on."  
  
"I can't tell you much right now. We don't have much time, and it's not safe to give away too much. But you are being controlled by the Matrix. It inserts false information into your brain, which you accept as reality. The real world is much different to this. I can release you and your mind from this prison, but you have to trust me." He opened his hand, revealing two pills, one blue, one red. "If you want to find out the truth, and break through the barriers of the matrix, then take the red pill. If you want to wake up in your bed tomorrow, and have forgotten all this, take the blue pill. But - you must be certain of your choice before making it." Sitting back, he extended his hand towards Amie and waited, watching her.  
  
It didn't take long to decide. Her life was hardly worth living, after all. And if taking the red pill would take away the doubts and memories that were eating her up inside, then there was no competition. She reached for the red pill, swallowing it without water. Talon smiled, standing up and gently pushing her back to rest against the back of the chair. "Good," he said, picking up some electrodes and starting to press them gently onto her skin. "These will disrupt your carrier signal," he explained briefly, turning away to watch the display of a large machine. "Good luck."  
  
Left alone, Amie frowned to herself. She glanced at the electrodes that were placed on her arms, feeling more on her skull. There had been no real explanation for them, no details about what would happen to her. _In fact_, she thought angrily. _I might as well not be_ - Her thoughts were interrupted by a shadow that was hanging from the ceiling, directly above her head. As she watched warily, a small dark snake dropped from a pipe, landing in her lap with a soft hiss. Unafraid - it was a harmless breed - she followed it with her eyes as it latched onto her arm, winding its supple body around her skin. After a moment, it looked up at her, golden eyes fixed on her green ones - and began to melt.  
  
It was welding onto her arm, shining black liquid running up and down her forearm. It was quite cool and painless, but certainly strange. The waxy liquid spread faster and faster, spiralling over her skin to cover all of her arms. It shot over her shoulder, making its way down onto her chest - and up her neck. She fought to keep still as the cold fluid ran up her neck and lips, entering her mouth. As rivulets seeped down her tongue, she screamed, the room before her going black.

* * *

A/N: Gah, this chappie took long enough. To all readers: I'm sorry, but you know how writer's block is. I haven't been able to write for months hangs head. Anyway, I know this isn't my best work, and I know there aren't many snakes hanging around Birmingham, but I wanted to get this done and I wanted to be original with her unplugging, after a reading a wonderful fic which included a cat. Anyways, next chapter hopefully won't take so long (and I'm working on another matrix fic!) so please R&R and I'll try to write again ASAP! 


	7. Explanations

Amie opened her eyes slowly, feeling hard metal and lumpy fabric below her. Feeling dizzy suddenly as she looked up at a grey ceiling that was not her own, she put out a hand to steady herself, flinching as it hit more cold metal. She blinked a few times, wondering why she was here, in this strange bed in a strange room. She could remember only fragments; the gang of teenagers near her apartment, the phone call from Talon, the snake, the pills... the mention of the Matrix. Then nothing. She frowned, struggling to remember more, but nothing came into her mind, no explanation of what was happening, nothing.  
  
As her senses became more alert, she slowly became aware of some sort of disturbance around her. The room seemed to be rocking and moving, and she could hear shouting just outside the room. A faint red flashing light came to her under the door of her room - what was happening? She sat up carefully, wondering at how weak she was, and hugged her knees, waiting for the panic to subside. That doesn't look like happening anytime soon, she thought wryly.   
  
"Charge the EMP!" A shout echoed through the walls of - wherever she was - as the red light flashed more regularly. After a moment, there was a bang, making the room shudder and rock more violently for a few seconds, during which the light went out. Amie bit her lip, curling up as she sat on the thin mattress in the pitch-black room - there didn't seem to be any other light source around. _It must be night.  
_  
Slowly, she heard a faint clicking sound, and the light in her room flickered back on. She could now hear hushed voices outside the door, and hurried footsteps. Watching the door, she saw it open slowly, a woman's head poking into the room to look at her. Seeing that she was awake, the woman smiled and entered the room, sitting on a small chair next to the bed.  
  
"Oh good, you're awake." She smiled at Amie again, kindly. "I'm Enigma."  
  
"Um... hi." Amie felt slightly awkward, having no idea what was happening or where she was. After a short pause, she spoke again, asking, "What just happened?"  
  
"Oh - there was a sentinel attack," Enigma replied, completely forgetting that Amie would have no idea what sentinels were. "But it's over now, it's ok."  
  
"What are sentinels?" She paused, thinking of a better question. "Why am I here?"  
  
Enigma frowned, standing up. "You don't remember?" At Amie's mute shrug, she sighed and reached out to take the girl's hand. "I think I should take you to see Talon."  
  
As Amie allowed herself to be led out of the room, she caught sight of her reflection in the mirror and stopped walking, shocked. Along her bare arms and lower legs were several black sockets, standing out slightly from her skin. She raised her hand to touch them, feeling the cold metal that seemed to be welded into her skin with a frown. She was distracted, however, by the second startling sight in the mirror. Before her encounter with Talon, she had had long, bright red hair... and now it was gone. Entirely and completely gone - not even fuzz remained, like it did when people shaved their heads. She stood, gazing at her odd reflection, until Enigma turned round, having noticed that her charge had stopped, and took her hand gently again. "Talon will explain everything," she assured Amie, leading her along a corridor towards a large room.  
  
Everything seemed to be metal - the walls, the floors, the equipment. Amie gazed around the large room with interest, until a man approached her from behind a wall of computer monitors... Talon. He was no longer wearing the clothes she had seen him in last, but he too was smiling kindly. "Shadow," he nodded at Enigma, who crossed the room to stand with a small group of people. "I'm glad to see you're feeling better."  
  
Amie watched him doubtfully. She was still feeling weak and confused, even if she was physically healthy - or so she supposed. _Why is he still calling me Shadow?_  
  
Talon, oblivious to Amie's thoughts, started to walk across to the group, beckoning for her to follow. "This is my ship, the Horus," he said as they crossed the room. "It's a hovercraft. This room is called the Core, and it's where we jack into the matrix - but I'll explain that soon. I'd like you to meet my crew, first." He had led her over to where the small group were standing. It was composed of mainly women, with only one other man in addition to Talon.  
  
"This is Glance," he gestured towards the man, then turned towards the five women. "This is Scathach... you've met Enigma... That's Byte - the crazy one," he smiled as Byte grinned widely at Amie. "And this is Blitz - our operator, and Toriye."   
  
After Amie had been introduced to the crew, Talon led her to the ship's cockpit, allowing her to look out onto the wasteland. "What is this?" she asked, stunned that such destruction could exist anywhere.  
  
"This is the Earth," Talon answered sadly, gazing through the strong glass onto the rubble. "You see Shadow, life as you knew it doesn't really exist. It did once, but that was a long time ago, and now - the world looks like this. Come with me." He led her through the ship and down a metal ladder, into what looked like a mess hall. They sat down, Talon offering Amie a glass of water. "You'll need it," he nodded as she accepted it, sitting opposite her.  
  
"You think it is the year 1999, but in reality it is more like 2199. No one is quite sure of the date, but at least two centuries have passed since the beginning of the war." He paused, watching Amie's set face for a reaction. "The war began when humans began to create AI - Artificial Intelligence. We used robots to serve us, to take over the jobs that we didn't want. For a time, this was good; humans and robots co-existed peacefully, and had an understanding with each other. But eventually, our thirst to be powerful went too far. We created robots that were too intelligent; intelligent enough to think and act for themselves. And one day, something happened that would change the world. One robot, named B166ER, attacked and killed his master. No one knows why, but he did. And after that, humans became afraid. We tried to rid our world of the robots, dropping them into the sea or burning them. But of course, the robots didn't want to be destroyed. They fought back and disguised themselves as humans. And soon it became a full-scale war, with humans and robots fighting so much that they began to destroy the world. Whole cities were torn down, thousands of people and robots killed. But still, neither side was prepared to give in. The robots, of course, were able to reproduce themselves and we could not - we were outnumbered a thousand to one. Eventually, we tried the last course of action that we could see."   
  
Talon stopped talking and sat back to watch Amie. She was sitting still and silent, stunned by what she was hearing. "Go on..." she murmured.  
  
"We planned to destroy the sky. It sounds impossible, ridiculous maybe, but it was the only thing we could think of. The robots were solar powered you see, and if we blocked out the sky then they would not be able to function - or so we hoped. But it didn't work like that. To cut a long story short, we lost the war - obviously, but the machines had to find a new source of energy. They turned to humans. We had everything - energy, heat, any source of power they wanted. So they used special machines to harness our energy, through these - " he stretched out an arm, indicating the sockets that were positioned over his muscles. Amie felt a flash of relief that it wasn't just her. "We call them plugs. Through these the machines could get our power, and they could also feed us, because they kept us imprisoned in pods full of goo. Of course though, we would have found some way to break free, and maybe even rebel against them, so they put another plug in the back of our heads, leading right into our brain. And through these they controlled what we saw. They made a new, programmed world, making it appear just as it did before the war, so that we all thought no time had passed; nothing had happened. And humans accepted it - except for a few, like you and me. The first one to get free learnt about the matrix and the war - I have no idea how - and freed the first of us. Since then we have built our own city, Zion, and made up a community of ships like this one, in which we travel across the surface and through the earth, occasionally plugging into the matrix to try and fight some of the agents. The agents are like the police of the matrix, only they are not like the police we knew when we were in there. They are programmes, designed to destroy the Resistance - us."  
  
He stopped talking suddenly, looking at the pale Amie. She was close to tears from both exhaustion and shock; her whole world had been torn away; everything she had thought was real had been a lie. She didn't know what to think any more. Noticing this, Talon stood up and reached out a hand to help her up. "You should sleep now - you'll still be tired from the work we had to do on you, and it's a lot to take in. I'll tell you more tomorrow."  
  
He started to walk back to Amie's cabin, allowing her to stumble along behind him, yawning slightly. As he helped her back up the ladder, she thought of something. "What work did you do on me?"  
  
"Oh..." he paused, shrugging. "Your muscles had atrophied from seventeen years of non-use; we had to re-build them. You've been unconscious for five days, so we've been doing it then. Today was the first day you've woken up since we freed you."  
  
Amie nodded as they reached her cabin, bidding Talon goodnight. She walked in alone, sitting on the bed in the semi-darkness.  
  
Amie had never existed. A machine had given her that name - but she wouldn't be controlled by a machine anymore. Amie was dead. Shadow was Amie no more.

* * *

A/N: Whoo, probably one of my longest (and fastest written) chappies yet! I like this one, but it took a while to work out how to explain the matrix to Shadow. In the fic, I'll be calling her Shadow from now, as that's how she thinks of herself - just so no one gets confused. Hope you liked - reviews and CCs welcome! 


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